Webster was internationally recognized as one of jazz's elder statesman when he recorded this album in 1957, but the youthful fire that had marked his playing with the Duke Ellington Orchestra two decades earlier was undiminished.

Leading a stellar combo through a program consisting mostly of vintage pop tunes, the great tenor saxophonist is at his peak. And this reissue includes three rare recordings of Webster on piano, the first instrument he played as a young professional musician. - Acoustic Sounds

“The by turns grizzled and vaporous-toned Webster really hit his stride on the Verve label. During a stretch from roughly 1953-1959, the Ellington alumnus showcased his supreme playing with both combos and string sections, swingers and ballads -- and lurking beneath his blustery and hulking sound were solo lines brimming with sophistication and wit. This 1957 date with the Oscar Peterson Trio is one of the highlights of that golden '50s run.” - AllMusic

Recorded in 1957.

Musicians:

Ben Webster, tenor saxophone

Ray Brown, bass

Herb Ellis, guitar

Stan Levey, drums

Oscar Peterson, piano

About Ben Webster:

Ben Webster (1909 – 1973), born in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, is considered one of the three most important "swing tenors" along with Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young. Known affectionately as The Brute, or Frog, he had a tough, raspy, and brutal tone on stomps (with growls), yet on ballads he played with warmth and sentiment. Stylistically he was indebted to alto star Johnny Hodges, who, he said, taught him to play his instrument. - Wiki

“Billie Holiday was a true artist of her day and rose as a social phenomenon in the 1950s. Her soulful, unique singing voice and her ability to boldly turn any material that she confronted into her own music made her a superstar of her time. Today, Holiday is remembered for her masterpieces, creativity and vivacity, as many of Holiday’s songs are as well known today as they were decades ago. Holiday’s poignant voice is still considered to be one of the greatest jazz voices of all time.” – BillieHoliday.com

“Although known as a “singer’s singer”, Bllie shows great depth of emotion and feeling as she wistfully wends her way through eight evergreens. Her husky voice fits each of these tunes like a glove..and a velvet one at that. From well-known tunes like Johnny Green’s “Body and Soul” or “Embraceable You” from the pens of the talented Brothers Gershwin … to perhaps the more basic emotions of Don Redman and Andy Razaf’s “Gee, Baby Ain’t I Good To You”, the ‘Lady’ sings as through the tune had been written just for her. Her wonderful phrasing plus that into that indefinable quality that is hers alone, elevate these tunes into the ranks of the memorable. …

Billie Holiday’s voice is one of those wonderful sounds that are truly jazz. Coarse yet war, with that unique phrasing. … This then is the exquisite delicacy of Lady Day. She sings her bruised heart out … her shattered dreams are here for you to hear. But listen to them with your heart. .. as they were sung. For this is the greatest of them all … This is … Lady Day.” – Liner Notes to the Album.

Small jazz groups brought out the best in Billie Holiday - especially groups as good as the one heard on this classic 1957 recording. Ben Webster, Harry "Sweets" Edison and the other members of this stellar ensemble were not just gifted soloists but sensitive accompanists as well. Lady Day was rarely more ably supported than she was on this program of sturdy standards, including three gems by the Gershwin brothers -and she rarely sounded more luminous.

"these are all truly classic Verve titles that you simply don't want to miss...most importantly, the sound of these reissues is nothing short of astounding. Particularly the early Billie and Ella mono records are incredible treasures of sonic beauty. I'd definitely ask Santa for the whole set, or, if you want to cherry pick, the most classic titles. Whatever you decide, you owe yourself at least a half dozen!" Winner of a 2012 Positive Feedback Online Writers' Choice Award - Danny Kaey, Positive Feedback Online, November/December 2011

Part of the ultimate audiophile Prestige stereo reissues from Analogue Productions — 25 of the most collectible, rarest, most audiophile-sounding Rudy Van Gelder recordings ever made. All cut at 33 1/3.

Booker Telleferro Ervin II (1930 - 1970) was an American tenor saxophone player. His tenor playing was characterised by a strong, tough sound and blues/gospel phrasing. He is best known for his association with bassist Charles Mingus.

“Booker Ervin's recordings with Charles Mingus and Randy Weston brought him good reviews and a bit of notoriety. But it was his series of Song Books for Prestige Records that broadcast the stentorian announcement that a jazz orator of gigantic stature had arrived.

Ervin's tenor saxophone sound was haunted by the loneliness and spaciousness of the Texas plains where he was raised. The Southwest moan was an integral part of his playing. But his style went beyond the classic Texas tenor tradition to incorporate the intricacies of bebop and suggestions of the free jazz that was initiating one of the periods of self-renewal that keeps jazz fresh and interesting.

The Freedom Book, recorded at the end of 1963, was one of Ervin's masterpieces. He is abetted by the power and drive of Jaki Byard, Richard Davis, and Alan Dawson.” – Acoustic Sounds

“In the course of a long and illustrious career, Hawkins has subjected his style to continuous development. Intellectually and technically flexible, the style has always remained the man, distinctive and personal. This album reveals a new deployment of resources, a new viewpoint arrived at after a period of reflection.

“Improvising creatively on a wide variety of material on this (album), ranging from "Intermezzo" and "Here's That Rainy Day" to "Red Roses for a Blue Lady" and "Indian Summer." Best is an adventurous version of "Out of Nowhere" that shows that the tenor-saxophonist was still coming up with new ideas in 1965.” - AllMusic

One of the first prominent jazz musicians on his instrument, as Joachim E. Berendt explained: "there were some tenor players before him, but the instrument was not an acknowledged jazz horn". While Hawkins is strongly associated with the swing music and big band era, he had a role in the development of bebop in the 1940s.

Fellow saxophonist Lester Young, known as "Pres", commented in a 1959 interview with The Jazz Review: "As far as I'm concerned, I think Coleman Hawkins was the President first, right? As far as myself, I think I'm the second one." Miles Davis once said: "When I heard Hawk, I learned to play ballads." - Wiki

Dexter Gordon considered this his finest album, and few would disagree. With the perfect rhythm section of Sonny Clark, Butch Warren and Billy Higgins, this tenor giant reinvents standards like "Three O'clock In The Morning," "Second Balcony Jump" and "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry" and introduces his most famous composition, "Cheese Cake."

"…As much as I'd love to relay all kinds of anecdotes about the challenges Steve Hoffman and Kevin Gray encounter during the mastering sessions, I witness none. These boys know the sound of the facility and the Van Gelder masters like the backs of their hands…Back home a month later, I unpack some test pressings Chad Kassem has sent me…I hear the most realistic-sounding drums ever reproduced by my system. It's as though I'm sitting at the point of creation, experiencing the same high that brought such gifted musicians together as one. Steve Hoffman, Kevin Gray, Chad Kassem, and Don MacInnis have done Rudy Van Gelder and his Blue Note artists proud." – Jason Victor Serinus, Stereophile, April 2008

“In 1962, when the 39-year old Dexter Gordon recorded Go, he had already lived a lifetime in jazz. After gaining experience playing with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Louis Armstrong, in 1945, Gordon became the first tenor-saxophonist to not only master bebop but to develop his own distinctive sound in the new style. He recorded with Dizzy Gillespie and as a leader, and starred in late night jam sessions in Los Angeles with fellow tenors Wardell Gray and Teddy Edwards. After a largely uneventful decade in the 1950s, Gordon made a major comeback in 1961 when he emerged in prime form on Blue Note, recording Dexter Calling.

Its follow-up album Go! Was even better. Joined in his quartet by the great pianist Sonny Clark, bassist Butch Warren and drummer Billy Higgins, Gordon really digs into the colorful program. On such numbers as “Three O’Clock In The Morning” (a standard that was extinct after the early 1920s), “Love For Sale,” his own “Cheesecake,” and “I Guess I’ll Hang My Tears Out To Dry,” Gordon plays chorus after chorus of outstanding ideas in his huge tone. He caresses the melodies, creates solos that are full of swing, wit, and inspiration, and makes every phrase sound personal, fresh and original. There was no mistaking Dexter Gordon for anyone else, and he always gave one the impression that he could play for hours without running out of inventive ideas or personality. Go! Is an album that grows in interest and power with each listen. It is Dexter Gordon at the height of his powers.” - Music Matters

“From the first moments when Dexter Gordon sails into the opening song full of brightness and confidence, it is obvious that Go is going to be one of those albums where everything just seems to come together magically. A stellar quartet including the stylish pianist Sonny Clark, the agile drummer Billy Higgins, and the solid yet flexible bassist Butch Warren are absolutely crucial in making this album work, but it is still Gordon who shines.” – AllMusic

Musicians:

Dexter Gordon, tenor saxophone

Sonny Clark, piano

Butch Warren, bass

Billy Higgins, drums

About Dexter Gordon:

“Dexter Gordon had such a colorful and eventful life (with three separate comebacks) that his story would make a great Hollywood movie. The top tenor saxophonist to emerge during the bop era and possessor of his own distinctive sound, Gordon sometimes was long-winded and quoted excessively from other songs, but he created a large body of superior work and could battle nearly anyone successfully at a jam session. His first important gig was with Lionel Hampton (1940-1943) although, due to Illinois Jacquet also being in the sax section, Gordon did not get any solos. In 1943, he did get to stretch out on a recording session with Nat King Cole. Short stints with Lee Young, the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, and Louis Armstrong's big band preceded his move to New York in December 1944 and becoming part of Billy Eckstine's Orchestra, trading off with Gene Ammons on Eckstine's recording of "Blowin' the Blues Away." Gordon recorded with Dizzy Gillespie ("Blue 'N' Boogie") and as a leader for Savoy before returning to Los Angeles in the summer of 1946. He was a major part of the Central Avenue scene, trading off with Wardell Gray and Teddy Edwards in many legendary tenor battles; studio recordings of "The Chase" and "The Duel" helped to document the atmosphere of the period.

After 1952, drug problems resulted in some jail time and periods of inactivity during the '50s (although Gordon did record two albums in 1955). By 1960, he was recovered and soon he was recording a consistently rewarding series of dates for Blue Note. Just when he was regaining his former popularity, in 1962 Gordon moved to Europe where he would stay until 1976. While on the continent, he was in peak form and Gordon's many SteepleChase recordings rank with the finest work of his career. Gordon did return to the U.S. on an occasional basis, recording in 1965, 1969-1970, and 1972, but he was to an extent forgotten in his native land. It was therefore a major surprise that his return in 1976 was treated as a major media event. A great deal of interest was suddenly shown in the living legend with long lines of people waiting at clubs in order to see him. Gordon was signed to Columbia and remained a popular figure until his gradually worsening health made him semi-active by the early '80s. His third comeback occurred when he was picked to star in the motion picture 'Round Midnight. Gordon's acting was quite realistic and touching. He was nominated for an Academy Award, four years before his death after a very full life. Most of Dexter Gordon's recordings for Savoy, Dial, Bethlehem, Dootone, Jazzland, Blue Note, SteepleChase, Black Lion, Prestige, Columbia, Who's Who, Chiaroscuro, and Elektra Musician are currently available. ~ Scott Yanow” – Blue Note Records

Masterpieces By Ellington shines from an astonishingly brief period of history that gave the recording industry two of its greatest achievements — the introduction of magnetic tape recording and the 33 1/3 LP, or long-playing record.

Four years. That's all it took to go from the discovery by Americans, of German advancements in the field of sound recording, to the marketing of tape decks in the U.S. by the Ampex company, to Columbia's unveiling of its 12” LP, and the first long-playing record to be sold to consumers.

The four selections contained here catapulted the Maestro Ellington into the LP era, as the great composer/arranger/pianist and his matchless orchestra took full advantage of the possibilities afforded by magnetic tape recording and the still-new 33 1/3 RPM LP to, for the first time, capture uncut concert arrangements of their signature songs.

Suddenly, for the first time in his career, Ellington was able to forgo the 3 minutes-and-change restrictions afforded by the short running time of the 78 RPM disc. He and his band rose to the occasion with extended (11-minute plus) 'uncut concert arrangements' of three of his signature songs — “Mood Indigo,” “Sophisticated Lady,” with evocative vocals by Yvonne Lanauze, as well as “Solitude.” Masterpieces was also notable for the debut of the full-bodied, surprise-laden “The Tattooed Bride,” and for the swansongs of three Ellintonian giants of longstanding: drummer Sonny Greer, trombonist Lawrence Brown and alto saxist Johnny Hodges (the latter two would eventually return to the fold).

This album wouldn't have been possible without a chain of events starting at the end of World War II. Recorded in December 1950, just five years after Germany fell to the Allies, revealing the Germans' advances in magnetic tape recording, Ellington's master work holds its wonder still today and the recording quality hands-down betters the sound of many modern-day albums.

Masterpieces is a revelation and a throwback to a golden recording age. So much history and so much luck combined make this album truly special. - Acoustic Sounds

"Most highly recommended. It's one of my "Records to Die For" in the February 2015 Stereophile. You won't have to die to get a copy. $30 will do and it's well worth the money. A true classic both musically and sonically and a historical work of art you can now own." -Michael Fremer, analogplanet.com, Music 11/11, Sound 11/11

Tracklist:

A1 Mood Indigo

A2 Sophisticated Lady

B1 The Tattooed Bride

B2 Solitude

About Duke Ellington:

"Duke Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category. He remains one of the most influential figures in jazz, if not in all American music and is widely considered as one of the twentieth century's best known African American personalites. As both a composer and a band leader, Ellington's reputation has increased since his death, with thematic repackagings of his signature music often becoming best-sellers. Posthumous recognition of his work include a special award citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board.

Simply put, Ellington transcends boundaries and fills the world with a treasure trove of music that renews itself through every generation of fans and music-lovers. His legacy continues to live onand will endure for generations to come. Winton Marsalis said it best when he said "His music sounds like America." Because of the unmatched artistic heights to which he soared, no one deserved the phrase “beyond category” more than Ellington, for it aptly describes his life as well. He was most certainly one of a kind that maintained a llifestyle with universal appeal which transcended countless boundaries.

Duke Ellington is best remembered for the over 3000 songs that he composed during his lifetime. His best known titles include; "It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got That Swing", "Sophisticated Lady", "Mood Indigo", “Solitude", "In a Mellotone", and "Satin Doll". The most amazing part about Ellington was the most creative while he was on the road. It was during this time when he wrote his most famous piece, "Mood Indigo"which brought him world wide fame.

Duke Ellington's popular compositions set the bar for generations of brilliant jazz, pop, theatre and soundtrack composers to come. While these compositions guarantee his greatness, whatmakes Duke an iconoclastic genius, and an unparalleled visionary, what has granted him immortality are his extended suites. From 1943's Black, Brown and Beige to 1972's The Uwis Suite, Duke used the suite format to give his jazz songs a far more empowering meaning, resonance and purpose: to exalt, mythologize and re-contextualize the African-American experience on a grand scale."" - DukeEllington.com

Features of this vinyl reissue:

200g Vinyl

Plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings

Remastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound from the original analog tapes

Duke Ellington is joined by the likes of Clark Terry, Johnny Hodges and more for this recording from multiple sessions spreading from February 1958 to December 1959.

“It's tempting for Blues in Orbit to be overlooked when Duke Ellington's best albums are discussed, but truly it's an undisputed gem. There are 11 tracks, none of them is longer than 4:50 and it is all good stuff. There are some familiar favorites such as "In a Mellotone" and "C Jam Blues" as well as less often heard gems like "Blues in Blueprint and "Sweet and Pungent." It is also in stereo, and the arrangements are superb.

The featured performers include Ellington stalwarts Johnnie Hodges, Ray Nance, Harry Carney and Jimmy Hamilton, as well as the less familiar Booty Wood and Matthew Gee. Johnnie, in particular is well showcased here, taking the lead not only in slow pieces like "Brown Penny" and "Sentimental Lady", but also in the rousing, "Smada."

The full Analogue Productions reissue treatment is at work on this smashing LP — famed mastering engineer Bernie Grundman handled the remastering from the original analog tapes. The lacquers were plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings, maker of the world's finest-sounding LPs. Lastly we've stashed each super-silent 200-gram disc in a premium Stoughton Printing gatefold jacket.

All of the takes were recorded during after midnight sessions recorded over two nights starting on December 2, 1959 in New York at Columbia Records' studio on East 30th Street. Each night Duke's late dinner arrived at 2 a.m. — a sizzling steak, a pot of coffee with lemons in it, portions of American cheese, and grapefruits. After dinner, and a breather for the band, the sessions finished around dawn in a swinging fashion.

If you're just getting into jazz, this album is highly recommended as a great way to initiate your collection. The sound is incredible, with packaging to match. Another audiophile home run.” – Acoustic Sounds

“it's an album worth tracking down, if only to hear the band run through a lighter side of its sound -- indeed, it captures the essence of a late-night recording date that was as much a loose jam as a formal studio date, balancing the spontaneity of the former and the technical polish of the latter. Ellington and company were just back from a European tour when the bulk of this album was recorded at one after-midnight session in New York on December 2, 1959 -- the arrangements had to be hastily written out when the copyist failed to appear for the gig. So on the one hand, the band was kicking back with these shorter pieces; on the other, the group was also improvising freely and intensely at various points.” – AllMusic

There isn't much one can say about an album whose title is Ella And Louis Again. The "again" obviously means they've already done one album together and beyond that, what can you say about two people like Ella and Louis? I doubt that there's anyone today who loves music, who doesn't know Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. The backing, with the Oscar Peterson Trio and Louis Bellson substituting for Buddy Rich, remains, as in the first album, quiet, discreet, swinging.

"Once again (so to speak) Pops and the First Lady of Song seem to be singing in the room, right be-fore your eyes. (When I recently played Ella & Louis for a friend who's a prominent jazz critic, he liter-ally gasped and afterward likened the experience to "an acid trip.") ... their shivering cruise through 'Au-tumn in New York,' on Ella & Louis Again, is one of those essential artifacts of American civilization." — Fred Kaplan, www.stereophile.com, Aug. 10, 2012

"...these are all truly classic Verve titles that you simply don't want to miss...most importantly, the sound of these reissues is nothing short of astounding. Particularly the early Billie and Ella mono rec-ords are incredible treasures of sonic beauty. I'd definitely ask Santa for the whole set, or, if you want to cherry pick, the most classic titles. Whatever you decide, you owe yourself at least a half dozen!" Winner of a 2012 Positive Feedback Online Writers' Choice Award - Danny Kaey, Positive Feedback Online, November/December 2011

The very fact that America's biggest jazz label called one of their albums quite simply Ella and Louis indicates that we are talking about something very special here. And surely enough has been said - "Satchmo" and the grande dame of jazz certainly need no further introduction. In the '50s just the mere mention of their forenames was enough to light up the eyes of jazz fans. A glance at the track list reveals that tranquility rules the day: wild stomps and improvised scats will neither be sought nor missed.

Of prime importance to the jazz ballad is a feeling of "letting oneself drift" in the inspiration which gushes forth from the minds of genial American songwriters. This is no contest - for the artists all pursue a common goal with extreme sensitiveness. The background combo, made up of first-class musicians and led by Oscar Peterson, performs with great concentration and almost obtrusive unobtrusiveness. Verve's highly successful producer Norman Granz decided quite deliberately to make the recording in the studio instead of at a live session. And success has verified his judgment, for such vocal jazz knows only gentle tones - but the result is all the more intensive for that.

"If you're a jazz-following audiophile, go buy this right away. Flummoxed by the $50 price tag? How much would you pay for the most palpable illusion you'll ever experience that Pops and the First Lady of Song are back among the living—standing, breathing, singing, and blowing, right in front of you? ... It's the only QRP Verve I've heard so far, but if it's a harbinger of things to come, it's what Satch would call a mitzvah!" — Fred Kaplan, www.stereophile.com, December 2011

"All hail Analogue Productions, the audiophile record company in Salina, Kansas, for hiring the best engineers to invent a new formula for pressing vinyl. The results are simply staggering. Check out the 45rpm remaster of the 1956 Ella & Louis (Fitzgerald & Armstrong). If you have a good stereo, you'll swear they're in the room!" — Fred Kaplan, Slate, December 2011

"...these are all truly classic Verve titles that you simply don't want to miss...most importantly, the sound of these reissues is nothing short of astounding. Particularly the early Billie and Ella mono records are incredible treasures of sonic beauty. I'd definitely ask Santa for the whole set, or, if you want to cherry pick, the most classic titles. Whatever you decide, you owe yourself at least a half dozen!" Winner of a 2012 Positive Feedback Online Writers' Choice Award — Danny Kaey, Positive Feedback Online, November/December 2011

“Jazz, unlike a bucket of nails, is full of paradoxes. There is, for example, the iconoclasm of the soloist having to mesh with collective improvisation. There is also, for lack of a better term, the business of jazz singing. Jazz, of course, began a good century ago as a vocal music. Yet, it has become increasingly clear with the diminishing of the great blues shouters and the general shitting of the center of the music to an instrumental bias that vocal jazz is, with few exceptions, an extraordinarily difficult form that offers one possible advantage: it´s easier to carry a voice around than a bass fiddle. In fact, the one definable tradition of jazz singing is probably blues singing. The rest of jazz singing has for some time been in the scattered, dissimilar hands of people who have persisted without the backrest of tradition. Among male singers who have not, by and large, had the prowess of female jazz singers-there have been Leo Watson, the remarkable scat singer whose word streams formed a series of harsh, cubistic dreams of birds, Chicago, and big bass drums; Jelly Roll Morton, a great jazz singer whose soft, thin, barreling voice still retains on his records an urgent poignancy, and his semi-followers, Clancy Hayes and Turk Murphy; Lips Page; Jack Teagarden, his prvoice good burlap; Nat King Cole, who developed a Casual, suede approach; and, finally, Louis Armstrong. Among the women, there have been, outside of the early blues singers, two, or possibly three principal figures-Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Mildred Bailey and alongside them, as well as stemming from them, such as Anita O´Day and Sarah Vaughan.

In recent years, the ranks of female jazz singers, though swelling daily, have been peopled by little more than handsome, leggy dilutions. But Ella Fitzgerald, has, for one reason and another, remained the most vigorous and ineffable singer in jazz and popular music. Her style was virtually set by the time she began professionally in the Thirties with Chick Webb. It was a rhythmical, agile, humorous way of singing that depended on a healthy, rather ordinary voice; a lack of useless ornamentation (most young singers today affect styles that are, basically, borrowed ornamentations); a direct and understanding delivery of lyrics (again, most young singers handle lyrics as if they were sucking mothballs) ; and a musicianship that enabled her to get away from the melody in a way that any composer would have been proud had he thought of it originally. It has, nevertheless, become more subtle, more flexible, more polished, and recently has manifested a luminous lyricism that is not apparent so much in its single parts as in the whole. She gives the impression today of the finished artist whose seams no longer show, whose approach is stable but exciting, and whose mind is in balance with the heart.

Louis Armstrong, on the other hand, has retained the insuperable singing style he had worked out by the late Thirties. There is less of the whooping, shoveling quality in his voice, which has, like rough waters, inevitably smoothed down, but the great singing foundation is apparent, particularly in the way he approaches ballads. And what great warmth and soul! What his voice has always been is an indication of how jazz singing could go. Louis invariably handles melody like a bear giving a hug; he smothers it in the peculiarities of his voice and enunciation, and out pops a new shapea kind of counter-melody, dressed, nevertheless, in tweeds and pearls.

Unfortunately, of late, Louis has confined himself almost exclusively to remaking blues of an earlier age and pedestrian popular songs so that each impression was but a fainter and dimmer carbon of the original great talent. This record gives Louis a chance at restoration. The materials are a judicious choice of high-level standards. And instead of his usual, diffident Dixieland backing, there are the Oscar Peterson Trio (Ray Brown on bass and Herb Ellis on guitar) plus Buddy Rich, who are properly pulsive and wholly discreet. In such a palmy setting, Armstrong is in simple, unraffish condition, and Ella is in impeccable voice. The record is full of pleasant inventions: Louis, muted, behind Ella; Ella humming behind Louis´ open horn; Ella and Louis in duet and a kind of near-counterpoint; Louis singing the verse of a song with such great feeling; Ella mimicing Louis; and always, the contrast of the rough and the fairway-of two remarkable voices and talents. A quiet, Sunday-go-to-meeting record, with slow and middle tempos throughout, (that, however, never stop swinging), it creates the sort of jazz that is pensive, rich, and rewarding.”

Dolphy is joined by Booker Little, Jaki Byard, Ron Carter and Roy Haynes.

In Far Cry without leaving form behind, Dolphy incorporated the spirit of adventure and abandon with which free jazz at its best infused freshness into jazz. – Press Release

"On this session Dolphy is joined by two like-minded weirdos in Little and Byard, as well as an able rhythm section in Carter and Haynes... Everything that we’ve come to love about Dolphy is on display here, from the unorthodox instruments to the stuttering, belligerent solos that seem to go from New York to LA by way of Saturn... Like Dolphy, Little was another prodigy who died early in his career; his smoothly wandering lines provide a sharp contrast to Dolphy’s prickly approach. Byard, of course, has an affection for all styles of piano playing and often welds them into the same passage, a technique he would really perfect in the company of Roland Kirk. At the time, this was forward thinking music that even today has a whiff of the avant-garde." - David Rickert, All About Jazz, November 2002

"One night during a one-time, two-week engagement at the Five Spot produced enough music of lasting merit for three albums. When Rudy Van Gelder took his portable equipment down to the fabled Cooper Square jazz club on July 16, 1961, he captured the interaction of an extraordinary quintet.

Eric Dolphy, Booker Little, Mal Waldron, Richard Davis and Ed Blackwell had formed a cooperative group and, if Little had not died in October 1961, there is no doubt that it would have been a potent force in the music of the 1960s and beyond. Dolphy himself died in June 1964, after establishing himself as one of the important contemporary reedmen. Here his alto saxophone and bass clarinet and Little’s trumpet explore three originals: "The Prophet" by Dolphy, "Bee Vamp" by Little, and "Fire Waltz" by Waldron. It’s time caught in a bottle — music for the ages." - Acoustic Sounds

“After having left the ensemble of Charles Mingus and upon working with John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy formed a short-lived but potent quintet with trumpeter Booker Little, who would pass away three months after this recording. Despite all of the obstacles and subsequent tragedy, this quintet became legendary over the years -- justifiably so -- and developed into a role model for all progressive jazz combos to come. The combined power of Dolphy and Little -- exploring overt but in retrospect not excessive dissonance and atonality -- made them a target for critics but admired among the burgeoning progressive post-bop scene. With the always stunning shadings of pianist Mal Waldron, the classical-cum-daring bass playing of Richard Davis, and the colorful drumming of alchemistic Ed Blackwell, there was no stopping this group.

Live at the legendary Five Spot Café in New York City, this band set the Apple, and the entire jazz world on their collective ears. "Fire Waltz" demonstrates perfectly how the bonfire burns from inside the soul of these five brilliant provocateurs, as Dolphy's sour alto and Little's dour trumpet signify their new thing. Dolphy's solo is positively furious, while Blackwell nimbly switches up sounds within the steady 3/4 beat. "Bee Vamp" does not buzz so much as it roars in hard bop trim. A heavy tandem line breaks and separates in the horn parts like booster rockets. Blackwell is even more amazing, and Dolphy's ribald bass clarinet set standards that still influences players of the instrument. Where "The Prophet" is a puckery blues, it is also open armed with minor phrasings and stretched harmonics. This is where Waldron and Davis shine in their terra cotta facades of roughly hewn accompaniments to Dolphy and Little's bold flavored statements. A shorter alternate take of "Bee Vamp" is newly available, shorter by two-and-a-half minutes and with a clipped introductory melody.

Most hail this first volume, and a second companion album from the same sessions, as music that changed the jazz world as much as Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane's innovative excursions of the same era. All forward thinking and challenged listeners need to own these epic club dates.” – AllMusic

In 1960, the free jazz pioneered by Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor, Horace Tapscott and a very few others was rejected by many musicians and most listeners. For the visionary saxophonist, clarinetist and flutist Eric Dolphy, it was simply new music fed by the mainstream, a logical extension of the jazz tradition. In Far Cry without leaving form behind, he incorporated the spirit of adventure and abandon with which free jazz at its best infused freshness into jazz. Recording with a pianoless quartet that used Ron Carter’s cello as the other melody instrument, Dolphy worked from chord patterns developed within structures that depart from ordinary 32-bar jazz and popular song forms. He used 30-bar, 35-bar and 18-bar structures, but he also observed standard practice with 12-bar blues, “Serene.” Dolphy’s speech-like improvisations and Carter’s bowed or plucked cello solos soar over the impeccable and responsive accompaniments of bassist George Duvivier and drummer Roy Haynes. – Press Release

“On this session, Eric Dolphy teamed up with drummer Roy Haynes, bassist George Duvivier and cellist Ron Carter. Carter's cello lends the proceedings an intimate chamber jazz feel, and his arco double stops bridge the gap between chordal and melody instrument. The leader shows his prowess on clarinets and flute as well as alto … his flute solos (particularly on Randy Weston's ballad "Sketch of Melba") are every bit as muscular and colourful as those played on the other horns. The opening title track features tight ensemble work from Carter and Dolphy, leading into a typically pyrotechnic alto excursion from the leader. Here he settles on a series of phrases that are all slight variations on each other, like a Philip Glass arrangement of a Charlie Parker solo.

The other alto feature is "Feathers", a mournful ballad which comes on like a cross between one of Mingus's ballads and a Coleman dirge. Carter's pizzicato chording shadows Dolphys' statement of the melody before the leader lets rip with a solo crammed with trills, soulful cries and mercurial bop runs. Mingus's "Eclipse" is in similar mode; Carter's mournfully sour cello meshes with the leaders clarinet and Duvivier's bowed bass, ending up with a wonderfully atmospheric coda. Haynes manages to propel without overpowering; on "17 West" he manages to power proceedings with just brushes and snare, erupting into a brief solo before the unexpected long fadeout.

Throughout, the instrumental combinations throw up beautiful clashes and consonances; much like Henry Threadgill's work with cellos, tubas and so on. Theres a sense of a proper Third Stream being mined here, and it says much for Dolphy's vision that such combinations are still the stuff of surprise 40 odd years later.” – BBC Music

“By the time this album was recorded in 1962, the 24-year old Freddie Hubbard had worked with Slide Hampton, Max Roach and J.J. Johnson prior to his association with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Miles Davis listed Hubbard among the top jazz trumpeters of the day. This was Freddie Hubbard's debut on the Impulse label, and to showcase his trumpet artistry he organized a group of top instru-mentalists to give him full support. The group included John Gilmore, tenor saxophone; Curtis Fuller, trombone; Art Davis, bass; Tommy Flanagan, piano and Louis Hayes, drums. Freddie Hubbard wrote three of the five compositions.” – Acoustic Sounds

“This 1962 effort was Freddie Hubbard's first recording under his own name for Impulse! Fellow Jazz Messenger Curtis Fuller and newcomer John Gilmore color the proceedings with added trombone and tenor saxophone, respectively. These rock-solid post-bop horn players are backed by the formidable rhythm section of Tommy Flanagan on piano, Art Davis on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums. Hubbard's shimmering style and clear tone show a clear debt to the late Clifford Brown and a nod to the bold sonic curiosity of John Coltrane. These are some hot young players pushing a classic format forward.” - AllMusic

Musicians:

Freddie Hubbard, trumpet

John Gilmore, tenor saxophone

Curtis Fuller, trombone

Art Davis, bass

Tommy Flanagan, piano

Louis Hayes, drums

About Freddie Hubbard:

“One of the great jazz trumpeters of all time, Freddie Hubbard formed his sound out of the Clifford Brown/Lee Morgan tradition, and by the early '70s was immediately distinctive and the pacesetter in jazz. However, a string of blatantly commercial albums later in the decade damaged his reputation and, just when Hubbard, in the early '90s (with the deaths of Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis), seemed perfectly suited for the role of veteran master, his chops started causing him serious troubles.

Born and raised in Indianapolis, Hubbard played early on with Wes and Monk Montgomery. He moved to New York in 1958, roomed with Eric Dolphy (with whom he recorded in 1960), and was in the groups of Philly Joe Jones (1958-1959), Sonny Rollins, Slide Hampton, and J.J. Johnson, before touring Europe with Quincy Jones (1960-1961). He recorded with John Coltrane, participated in Ornette Coleman's Free Jazz (1960), was on Oliver Nelson's classic Blues and the Abstract Truth album (highlighted by "Stolen Moments"), and started recording as a leader for Blue Note that same year. Hubbard gained fame playing with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers (1961-1964) next to Wayne Shorter and Curtis Fuller. He recorded Ascension with Coltrane (1965), Out to Lunch (1964) with Eric Dolphy, and Maiden Voyage with Herbie Hancock, and, after a period with Max Roach (1965-1966), he led his own quintet, which at the time usually featured altoist James Spaulding. A blazing trumpeter with a beautiful tone on flügelhorn, Hubbard fared well in freer settings but was always essentially a hard bop stylist.

In 1970, Freddie Hubbard recorded two of his finest albums (Red Clay and Straight Life) for CTI. The follow-up, First Light (1971), was actually his most popular date, featuring Don Sebesky arrangements. But after the glory of the CTI years (during which producer Creed Taylor did an expert job of balancing the artistic with the accessible), Hubbard made the mistake of signing with Columbia and recording one dud after another; Windjammer (1976) and Splash (a slightly later effort for Fantasy) are low points. However, in 1977, he toured with Herbie Hancock's acoustic V.S.O.P. Quintet and, in the 1980s, on recordings for Pablo, Blue Note, and Atlantic, he showed that he could reach his former heights (even if much of the jazz world had given up on him). But by the late '80s, Hubbard's "personal problems" and increasing unreliability (not showing up for gigs) started to really hurt him, and a few years later his once mighty technique started to seriously falter. In late 2008, Hubbard suffered a heart attack that left him hospitalized until his death at age 70 on December 29 of that year.Freddie Hubbard's fans can still certainly enjoy his many recordings for Blue Note, Impulse, Atlantic, CTI, Pablo, and his first Music Masters sets. ~ Scott Yanow” – Blue Note Records

Part of the ultimate audiophile Prestige stereo reissues from Analogue Productions — 25 of the most collectible, rarest, most audiophile-sounding Rudy Van Gelder recordings ever made. All cut at 33 1/3.

"Both are gorgeous impressions of soul, jazz and blues, brought together through the legacy of standards and new compositions. The tonality of Gene Ammons in particular is transfixing and it is with the stereo reissues from Prestige that Gene will get a lot of love with multiple titles scheduled for release. Booker Ervin was another great tenor sax player and his contributions to the Prestige vaults are timeless with Exultation!." — Erik Otis, Sound Colour Vibration, May 9, 2015.

“For nearly a quarter-century, beginning in 1950, tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons (1925-1974) was among the brightest stars in the Prestige Records firmament. Whether leading, or partaking in, one of Prestige’s jam sessions, immersing himself in the organ-dominated blues and gospel grooves that in the 1950s came to be called “soul jazz,” or digging deep for heart-rending ballads, Ammons was multiply masterful. And in 1960, leading a quintet featuring the impeccable pianist Tommy Flanagan, plus Ray Barretto’s piquant congas, he produced the insuperable Boss Tenor.

From the blues that drips from “Hittin’ the Jug” and “Blue Ammons” to the infectious medium bounce of the standards “Close Your Eyes” and “Canadian Sunset,” and from the sophisticated swing of “Stompin’ at the Savoy” to the finger-poppin’ bop of “Confirmation” and the after-hours balladry of “My Romance,” Boss Tenor has something for everyone claiming to be a fan of modern jazz.” – Acoustic Sounds

“Tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons' tone can be best described using the qualities of an ideally brewed cup of joe: rounded, bold, smooth, and exhilarating after first taste.

Widely regarded as an original founder of the "Chicago school of tenor sax," Ammons' nonchalant, yet indelible sound—echoing the soft, breathy tone of Lester Young—drove him to a great deal of fame within the post- World War II jazz crowds of the '50s. Ammons, famously nicknamed "Jug," had an inherent ability to cultivate new emotion within any obsolete standard, stemming from his signature timbre that was steeped in the blues, gospel, and R&B. Renowned for his versatility, Ammons was well-versed in the bebop tradition, yet greatly influenced the marketable "soul jazz" movement of the '60s. …

Whether it be during smoldering blues originals ("Hittin' the Jug," "Blue Ammons"), Latin-tinged bop classics ("Confirmation," "Stompin' at the Savoy"), or late-night balladry ("Close Your Eyes," "My Romance"), Ammons never fails to fall into a groove where expressiveness reigns above all else. His unwavering originality is best displayed during the album's revamped, contagious centerpiece, "Canadian Sunset," where every note played sounds as if it was deliberately picked with the utmost conviction. Overall, Boss Tenor is a sensitive, laid-back listen that evokes a multitude of raw human emotion.” – All About Jazz

Yusef Lateef and Brother Jack McDuff, then Green's employer, make a rare Blue Note appearance on this soulful Grant Green classic, which includes the magnificent slow blues "Blues In Maude's Flat" and a seductive version of "My Funny Valentine". Audiophile mastering by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman at AcousTech from the Original Master Tapes and pressed to 180g virgin vinyl at RTI.

“Grant Green's third album to be released, Grantstand teams the clear-toned guitarist with an unlikely backing group of musicians who rarely appeared with Blue Note otherwise: tenor saxophonist Yusef Lateef (who doubles on flute), organist Brother Jack McDuff, and drummer Al Harewood. Although Lateef was beginning to delve deeply into Eastern tonalities and instruments around the same time, his playing here is pretty straightforward and swinging, fitting the relaxed, bop-tinged soul-jazz that makes up most of the session. For his part, McDuff is mellower than his usual ferocious self, laying back and swinging with a blissful ease. Green contributes two bluesy originals, the nine-minute title track and the 15-minute "Blues in Maude's Flat," which are turned into loose, loping jams that rank as some of the best examples of Green's ability to work an extended groove.” – Allmusic

200-gram pressing by Quality Record Pressings has a flat edge profile and deep groove label, true to the original LP

Deluxe high-gloss tip-on album jacket

This unusual meeting of four tenor saxophone players from different "schools" was part of the Prestige Friday afternoon jam session series but far from a typical outing. The giant forebears of Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, and Charlie Parker inform the backgrounds of the performers on this LP — Hank Mobley, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims, and John Coltrane — and other influences such as Ben Webster, Dexter Gordon, and the Sonnys (Stitt and Rollins) show up, too, depending on which of the four protagonists you’re talking about.

With the Red Garland Trio supplying the underpinning, the four tenors meet on the common ground of the blues ("Bob’s Boys"), "I Got Rhythm" ("Tenor Conclave"), and two old standards. (The originals are by Mobley.) Rather than the stylistic differences, what stands out here is the compatibility and spirit of the four meeting on this common ground in an uncommon session. – Press Release

"The Mobley-penned title track commences the effort with the quartet of tenors showing off their stuff in high-flying style … After a brief introduction with all four rapidly reeling off short riffs, Mobley charges ahead into truly inspired territory. The midtempo take of "Just You, Just Me" keeps things lively with a light swinging pace that is custom-made for bringing the combo's jocular side to the surface, particularly toward the end as they "trade fours," with each tenor blowing four bars before passing the melody on.

The other Mobley composition is "Bob's Boys," and by all accounts it is the most compelling piece on the outing. The blues-based tune rollicks as Coltrane, Mobley, Cohn, and Sims find themselves configured in a seeming myriad of sonic face-offs. Wrapping up Tenor Conclave is an ultra-cool and sophisticated "How Deep Is the Ocean?" Cohn commences the long and luscious reading with a subtle strength, suggesting the powerful undercurrent flowing throughout the number. Also, listeners are treated to what is possibly Garland's finest interaction, leading right into Sims, Chambers, and finally a sublime Coltrane caboose." – AllMusic

Note: An audiophile 45rpm version of this album is also available here.

“Belafonte Sings The Blues, the inimitable singer's favorite recording, finds music legend Harry Belafonte illuminating the timeless words and music of the American blues in truly breathtaking sound. The stunning 11-track effort was recorded over four sessions during the first half of 1958 and released by RCA later that year.

The album features sublime performances of numerous Billie Holiday, Johnny Mercer, and Ray Charles titles, interpreted in a way that only Belafonte can. The blues are close to Belafonte's heart and it clearly shows here on his renditions of such classics as "One For My Baby," "Hallelujah I Love Her So," "Cotton Fields" and "God Bless the Child."

Belafonte has never before sung on records as he does on Belafonte Sings The Blues. He is freer, more earthy, and more exultantly identified with his material than ever before. He has always communicated an often ferocious power as well as lyrical sensitivity, but in this collection he achieves a unity of emotional strength in and understanding of his material that marks an important stage in his evolution as an artist.

There is not much to say about the individual performances that is not entirely clear on hearing them. Truly a classic for discerning audiophiles, Belafonte Sings The Blues was the first Belafonte album recorded in stereo. The sound is incredible, and the dead-silent backgrounds of QRP 200-gram vinyl preserve every exquisite detail.

Head Hunters is the twelfth studio album by the American pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, released October 13, 1973, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during evening at Wally Heider Studios and Different Fur Trading Co. in San Francisco, California. Head Hunters is a key release in Hancock's career and a defining moment in the genre of jazz. In 2003, the album was ranked number 498 in the book version of Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2007, the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry, which collects "culturally, historically or aesthetically important" sound recordings from the 20th century. – Wiki

“There are few artists in the music industry who have had more influence on acoustic and electronic jazz and R&B than Herbie Hancock.

In 1963, Miles Davis invited Hancock to join the Miles Davis Quintet. During his five years with Davis, Herbie recorded many classics with the jazz legend including ESP, Nefertiti and Sorcerer, and later on he made appearances on Davis' groundbreaking In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew.

Hancock's own solo career blossomed on Blue Note, with classic albums including Maiden Voyage, Empyrean Isles and Speak Like a Child. After leaving Davis' fold, Herbie put together a new band called The Headhunters and, in 1973 in San Francisco, recorded Head Hunters.

Head Hunters became not only Hancock's best-selling album, but also the second highest selling jazz album of all time (at last RIAA count). It was in 1973 that he gathered a new band to combine electric music with funk, perhaps best exemplified in the pop music of Sly Stone.

Hancock took over all synthesizer duties, along with Fender Rhodes and clavinet and was backed by bass and drums. The opening bars of "Watermelon Man" with Bill Summers blowing into a beer bottle, along with the band's funky grooves and new electric sounds, captured the crossover fans who had otherwise avoided buying jazz records.

Head Hunters was a pivotal point in Hancock's career, bringing him into the vanguard of jazz fusion. Hancock had pushed avant-garde boundaries on his own albums and with Miles Davis, but he had never devoted himself to the groove as he did on Head Hunters. Drawing heavily from Sly Stone, Curtis Mayfield and James Brown, Hancock developed deeply funky, even gritty, rhythms over which he soloed on electric synthesizers, bringing the instrument to the forefront in jazz. It had all of the sensibilities of jazz, particularly in the way it wound off into long improvisations, but its rhythms were firmly planted in funk, soul and R&B, giving it a mass appeal that made it the biggest-selling jazz album of all time (a record which was later broken).

Jazz purists, of course, decried the experiments at the time, but Head Hunters still sounds fresh and vital four decades after its initial release, and its genre-bending proved vastly influential on not only jazz, but funk, soul and hip-hop.” – Acoustic Sounds

"I've enjoyed Mark Wilder's 1997 CD remastering of Head Hunters for Columbia/Legacy, but every time I played it, I thought I should pick it up on LP. Listening to the new Analogue Productions edition (AAPJ 084) confirmed that suspicion. Hancock's opening synth lines in 'Chameleon' thump soundly in both formats, but have cleaner edges from the new vinyl. More important, as the other instruments join in, each has more room to breathe. Harvey Mason's kick drum is too forward on the CD and crowds the music; on AP's LP, it's audible but in support. Reverb is now audible in the notes of Bennie Maupin's sax, and Paul Jackson's bass, still the funk backbone of the album, isn't as overbearing as it now sometimes sounds to me on the CD. AP's 33.3rpm mastering gives each instrument space, and by deepening the soundstage it humanizes Hancock's electronic keyboards and burnishes some of the high-treble edge they have on the CD. ... This new pressing lets you hear how carefully Hancock constructed the music, and how well he and the other musicians worked together to bring it to life." — Joseph Taylor, SoundStage! Hi-Fi, October 2015 – Acoustic Sounds

“Drawing heavily from Sly Stone, Curtis Mayfield, and James Brown, Hancock developed deeply funky, even gritty, rhythms over which he soloed on electric synthesizers, bringing the instrument to the forefront in jazz. It had all of the sensibilities of jazz, particularly in the way it wound off into long improvisations, but its rhythms were firmly planted in funk, soul, and R&B, giving it a mass appeal that made it the biggest-selling jazz album of all time (a record which was later broken).” – AllMusic

“Head Hunters took the necessary risks. It would not only go on to pave the way for electronic music and hip-hop style, but Hancock's eclectic sound would cut across to influence other genres of music as well. Moreover, it ultimately changed the way people heard music by opening the door to new musical soundscapes and possibilities. For that fact alone, Head Hunters remains as one of the most sought after, influential jazz recordings ever created.” – All About Jazz

“Hugh Masekela is a world-renowned South African flugelhornist, trumpeter, bandleader, composer, singer and defiant political voice. Masekela began to hone his, now signature, Afro-Jazz sound in the late 1950s during a period of intense creative collaboration, most notably performing in the 1959 musical King Kong, written by Todd Matshikiza, and, soon thereafter, as a member of the now legendary South African group, the Jazz Epistles (featuring the classic line up of Kippie Moeketsi, Abdullah Ibrahim and Jonas Gwangwa).

In 1960, at the age of 21 he left South Africa to begin what would be 30 years in exile from the land of his birth. On arrival in New York he enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music. This coincided with a golden era of jazz music and the young Masekela immersed himself in the New York jazz scene where nightly he watched greats like Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Mingus and Max Roach. Under the tutelage of Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong, Hugh was encouraged to develop his own unique style, feeding off African rather than American influences.

In the late 1960s Hugh moved to Los Angeles in the heat of the ‘Summer of Love’, where he was befriended by counter culture icons like David Crosby, Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper. In 1967 Hugh performed at the Monterey Pop Festival alongside Janis Joplin, Otis Redding, Ravi Shankar, The Who and Jimi Hendrix. In 1968, his instrumental single "Grazin’ in the Grass" went to No. 1 on the American pop charts and was a worldwide smash, elevating Hugh onto the international stage.

His subsequent solo career has spanned 5 decades, during which time he has released over 40 albums (featured on countless more) and has worked with such diverse artists as Harry Belafonte, Dizzy Gillespie, The Byrds, Fela Kuti, Marvin Gaye, Herb Alpert, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder and the late Miriam Makeba. In 1990 Hugh returned home, following the unbanning of the ANC and the release of Nelson Mandela – an event anticipated in Hugh’s anti-apartheid anthem "Bring Home Nelson Mandela" (1986) which had been a rallying cry around the world.” – Press Release

A longtime audiophile demonstration disc. Hope will show off your system's dynamic range as well as any record ever released. Hugh Masekela, the outstanding South African trumpeter, assembled a seven-piece group and recorded this great set live at Washington, D.C.'s Blues Alley. The songs stretch over a period of nearly five decades and serve as an informal guided tour of Masekela's life. The songs are honest and bare, and as for the sound – WOW!

"…Hope is one of those intensely visceral, large as life, and immediately present recordings that will make pretty much any system sound at least very good, and will cause better ones to raise goose bumps." – Wayne Garcia, The Absolute Sound, August 2008

"A stunning demo disc to test or show off any stereo system." – Playback, June 2008

"Here's another masterpiece from Chad Kassem and Kevin Gray…you would swear that you are listening to a master tape in your living room…this one is great for showing off what your stereo system can do." – Jeff Dorgay, Tone Audio, No. 15, 2008

Part of the ultimate audiophile Prestige stereo reissues from Analogue Productions — 25 of the most collectible, rarest, most audiophile-sounding Rudy Van Gelder recordings ever made. All cut at 33 1/3.

From the time Coleman Hawkins firmly established the tenor saxophone on the jazz map, it has been one of the most potent forces in the music, its best practitioners able to raise the roof with a jumping blues, soothe the savage beast with a tender love ballad, and do just about anything in between.

At the time of this recording (1961), Jimmy Forrest, the St. Louis-born reedman, was a veteran of the Fate Marable, Jay McShann, Andy Kirk, and Duke Ellington bands. Later in his career he starred with Count Basie. Here he leads a quartet of teammates from the combo of "Sweets" Edison, including the young Austrian pianist Joe Zawinul, through a gamut of the aforementioned moods from "Crash Program" to the caressing "That's All," with a few tips of the cap to Ben Webster along the way. With Joe Zawinul, Tommy Potter and Clarence Johnston. – Acoustic Sounds

"an excellent example of tenor saxophonist Jimmy Forrest in a soulful but fairly straight-ahead setting. Accompanied by pianist Joe Zawinul, bassist Tommy Potter and drummer Clarence Johnston, Forrest revives his "Bolo Blues," and plays his basic "Crash Program," and otherwise sticks to melodic standards. His highly expressive powers and ability to say a lot with a few notes is very much in evidence on this excellent set." - AllMusic

“Standard Coltrane is an album credited to jazz musician John Coltrane, originally released in 1962 on Prestige Records. It is assembled from unissued results of a single recording session at the studio of Rudy Van Gelder in Hackensack, New Jersey, in 1958. As Coltrane's fame grew during the 1960s long after he had stopped recording for the label, Prestige used unissued recordings to create new marketable albums without Coltrane's input or approval.” - Wiki

“The title could not have been more accurate. By 1962, Coltrane’s leadership role was undeniable; he was a standard-bearer of musical commitment, and intense, bold exploration. As well, all four tunes on the album were truly ‘standards’: 32-bar tunes originally crafted for Broadway or Hollywood projects, adopted by jazz instrumentalists to interpret and explore. There’s another meaning to be gleaned from the album’s title. In 1958, when Coltrane recorded the tracks, he often favored melodies that had attained popularity during his teen years—familiar and unfamiliar alike—all in a search to find new structures and fresh inspiration. This indeed was standard Coltrane—in ’58, and well into the ’60s.” - Concord Music

200-gram pressing by Quality Record Pressings has a flat edge profile and deep groove label, true to the original LP

Deluxe high-gloss tip-on album jacket

Here is one of the musical giants of the 20th century, poised on the precipice of greatness. Between the spring of 1957 and the winter of 1958, during which time Lush Life was recorded, the music of tenor saxophonist John Coltrane (1926-1967) was developing in giant steps, thanks in great part to a six-month 1957 stint with Thelonious Monk that had much to do with sharpening Coltrane’s harmonic conception and torrential attack.

Lush Life contains Coltrane’s first recordings as sole leader, his initial date fronting a pianoless trio, and one of his first extended readings of a ballad, Billy Strayhorn’s resplendent title track. We also hear him at the helm of a quartet and quintet, featuring pianist Red Garland, with trumpeter Donald Byrd, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Louis Hayes added to “Lush Life.” Coltrane handles the tune’s delicate complexities with infinite style and finesse.

Coltrane and jazz would never be the same.

Analogue Productions has continued to push its own already high bar higher still. Its Quality Record Pressings plant is delivering the best vinyl discs to be found, its jackets and cover reproduction quality have hit new levels, and it continues to have the best in the biz - such as Kevin Gray for this series (25 mono LPs from the Prestige label's exceptional late-'50s run) cut lacquers from original analog master tapes. .. Lush Life mixes ballads (like the beautifully read title track) with up-tempo tunes, and the sound here is sweet, airy and open, with an especially lovely capturing of Coltrane's tenor and the lively percussion." — Wayne Garcia, The Absolute Sound, December 2015

200-gram pressing by Quality Record Pressings has a flat edge profile and deep groove label, true to the original LP

Deluxe high-gloss tip-on album jacket

This album continued the reinforcement of Coltrane’s importance as a stylist. As in Coltrane and John Coltrane and the Red Garland Trio, his first two albums as a leader for Prestige, the material in Soultrane is away from the ordinary. The Garland–Paul Chambers–Arthur Taylor rhythm section is a perfect accompanying unit for Trane who, by this time, was acknowledged to be — along with Sonny Rollins — one of the two most influential tenor saxophonists in jazz.

Soultrane opens with an exploration at length of "Good Bait," a Tadd Dameron-Count Basie collaboration, first recorded by Dizzy Gillespie in the 1940s. The way Coltrane plays the turns in the melody gives it a slight minuet flavor, complimented by solos by Garland and Chambers in the same, solid groove. "I Want To Talk About You" is a ballad written and originally recorded by Billy Eckstine in the mid-1940s. It’s entirely new to jazz interpretation.

Side Two opens with a Joe Stein-Leo Robin tune, "You Say You Care," never heard before this in a jazz context. Trane makes the most of chord changes in a swinging, medium-up setting. "Theme For Ernie" is a smoldering ballad dedicated by Philadelphian Freddie Lacey to Ernie Henry, the ex-Gillespie alto saxophonist who died suddenly in December 1957. Red begins the final track "Russian Lullaby" with an out-of-tempo introduction before Coltrane comes ripping in. Taking this and Coltrane’s prior interpretation of "Soft Lights And Sweet Music," it seems as though the boys like to play their Irving Berlin at high velocity.

Because of the astounding Coltrane solo works that both precede and follow Soultrane — most notably Lush Life and Blue Train — All Music Guide says this album has "perhaps not been given the exclusive attention it so deserves."

Originally released in 1958

"Analogue Productions has continued to push its own already high bar higher still. Its Quality Record Pressings plant is delivering the best vinyl discs to be found, its jackets and cover reproduction quality have hit new levels, and it continues to have the best in the biz - such as Kevin Gray for this series (25 mono LPs from the Prestige label's exceptional late-50s run) cut lacquers from original analog master tapes. ... Soultrane finds Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Art Taylor behind the kit, and the music is mostly driving jazz. Sonics here are also excellent, with a clear, solid presence and a nice, fat saxophone sound. Here's a case where I had an earlier Analogue Productions 45 RPM pressing at hand, and to my surprise the new edition is more transparent and detailed, with a greater sense of air and 'bloom' around the instruments." — Wayne Garcia, The Absolute Sound, December 2015

Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio from the Original Analog Master Tape!

200-gram vinyl pressed at Quality Record Pressings!

Tip-on Old-Style jacket by Stoughton Printing

In 1946, when Hartman was 23, he won a singing contest; eventually, he earned a spot in Dizzy Gillespie's band. Hartman labored largely unappreciated after getting kicked out of the band. That is, until he was spotted by John Coltrane and got pulled into creating what is probably his most noted recording, John Coltane and Johnny Hartman. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin routinely sought out Hartman's shows to soak up how he caught the phrase of a song just so. Sadly, Hartman was felled by lung cancer at age 60; both his work and his story are heartbreakingly underappreciated.

Here, Analogue Productions brings you Once in Every Life. This was Johnny Hartman's next-to-last album (he made a record for Audiophile 12 days later) and the 57-year-old singer was still in prime form. His rich baritone voice is joined by a sextet also including Frank Wess (on tenor and flute), trumpeter Joe Wilder and pianist Billy Taylor.

The ballads range from slow to a brighter medium-tempo pace, and Hartman (particularly on such tunes as "Easy Living," "Wave" and "I Could Write a Book") shows that he still had it this late in his career, writes AllMusic. In his film "Bridges of Madison County" Clint Eastwood used four tracks from Once in Every Life. That movie turned a lot of people on to Johnny Hartman.

Needless to say, the richness of this 200-gram reissue doesn't stop with Hartman's easy, mellow voice. Not by a long shot. To present his gorgeous tone in its best light we relied upon the always-top-notch mastering of Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, and the superior plating and pressing talents of Quality Record Pressings, makers of the world's finest-sounding LPs. Top it off with a Stoughton Printing tip-on heavyweight jacket and you've got the best Johnny Hartman reissue album you'll ever own.

This is definitely one you're not going to want to miss. Wow! Analogue Productions' Chad Kassem had been trying to license this title since 1994, and we finally got it. You'll know why he tried so long after you hear it. If you like our reissue of Dean Martin/Dream With Dean, you're gonna love this one. – Press Release

“Both for the music and spectacular sonics, for years Once In Every Life made both the audiophile and jazz enthusiast rounds. Clint Eastwood was a fan and so in 1995 he licensed songs from the album and put them in the movie "The Bridges of Madison County" that he directed and in which he starred. The soundtrack brought the soothing baritone vocalist a new, appreciative audience.” – Analog Planet

John Cornelius "Johnny" Hodges (1906 - 1970) was an American alto saxophonist, best known for solo work with Duke Ellington's big band.

He is considered one of the definitive alto saxophones players of the big band era (alongside Benny Carter)

Hodges started playing with Lloyd Scott, Sidney Bechet, Lucky Roberts and Chick Webb. When Ellington wanted to expand his band in 1928, Ellington's clarinet player Barney Bigard recommended Hodges. His playing became one of the identifying voices of the Ellington orchestra. From 1951 to 1955, Hodges left the Duke to lead his own band, but returned shortly before Ellington's triumphant return to prominence – the orchestra's performance at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival. – Wiki

“One of the giants of the alto saxophone, Johnny Hodges was perhaps the most important soloist and sideman in Duke Ellington's orchestra from 1928 up to Hodges' death in 1970. The self-taught player made many solo forays during his long career, one of his '50s outfits included a young John Coltrane, but history remembers Hodges for his virtuosic sidemanship, particularly his sensitive rendering of ballads.

Originally issued on Verve Records in 1958, Blues A Plenty finds the alto saxophonist in one of his standout dates as a leader, commandeering a talented group featuring Ben Webster (tenor saxophone), Roy Eldridge (trumpet) and Vic Dickenson (trombone) along with the Ellington rhythm section of Billy Strayhorn (piano), Jimmy Woode (bass) and Sam Woodyard (drums).” - Press Release

“Analogue Productions has brought back Julie Is Her Name Volume 2, making it an undeniable classic in every sense of the word. Remastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, and plated and pressed on 200-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, the result is a memory-stirring masterpiece.

Julie Is Her Name — Volume Two, has all the sincerity and warmth of her professional album debut, the best-selling Julie Is Her Name, from Liberty. An untested singer with uncompromising musical faith, an unknown record company, sophisticated, tastefully presented standards presented simply backed by just a bass and guitar — Julie Is Her Name faced long odds of success. Yet it soared to become a best-selling hit. Julie London rose to the Top 10 of every list of female vocalists.

And as to the cover, expect only top-notch reproduction for our Analogue Productions reissue. Originally a single LP jacket, we've upgraded to a gatefold incorporating more original photographs provided by Universal.

Describing her smoky vocal style, London once said, "It's only a thimbleful of a voice, and I have to use it close to a microphone. But it is a kind of over-smoked voice, and it automatically sounds intimate." A style inimitable, in our estimation.” - Acoustic Sounds

Sam “Lightnin’” Hopkins, a true poet who invented most of his lyrics on the spot and never seemed to run out of new ideas, was a blues giant of post-war blues whose style was rooted in pre-war Texas traditions. While he cranked up his amp to fierce proportions when performing for his friends at Houston juke joints, producers who recorded him for the so-called folk-blues market usually insisted that he use an acoustic guitar for more “authentic” results. Either way, Lightnin’ seldom made a bad record, and this June 4, 1963, session on which he played acoustic was among his finest, thanks much to the sensitive support of bassist Leonard Gaskin and drummer Herbie Lovelle, who did a remarkable job of following his irregular bar patterns and abrupt song endings. – Acoustic Sounds

Part of the ultimate audiophile Prestige stereo reissue series from Analogue Productions featuring 25 of the most collectible, rarest, most audiophile-sounding Rudy Van Gelder recordings ever made. All titles will be mastered from the original analog master tapes by Kevin Gray.

200-gram pressing by Quality Record Pressings has a flat edge profile and deep groove label, true to the original LP

Deluxe high-gloss tip-on album jacket

"Analogue Productions has continued to push its own already high bar higher still. Its Quality Record Pressings plant is delivering the best vinyl discs to be found, its jackets and cover reproduction quality have hit new levels, and it continues to have the best in the biz - such as Kevin Gray for this series (25 mono LPs from the Prestige label's exceptional late-50s run) cut lacquers from original analog master tapes. ... (Cookin') does have a warm, quite intimate perspective, with a fine sense of instrumental textures." — Wayne Garcia, The Absolute Sound, December 2015

Cookin’ With the Miles Davis Quintet is the first classic album of four total that emerged from two marathon and fruitful sessions recorded in 1956 (the other three discs released in Cookin’s wake were Workin’, Relaxin’ and Steamin’). All the albums were recorded live in the studio, as Davis sought to capture, with Rudy Van Gelder’s expert engineering, the sense of a club show á la the Café Bohemia in New York, with his new quintet, featuring tenor saxophonist John Coltrane.

In Miles’s own words, he says he called this album Cookin’ because “that’s what we did—came in and cooked.” What’s particularly significant about this Davis album is his first recording of what became a classic tune for him: “My Funny Valentine.” Hot playing is also reserved for the uptempo number “Tune Up,” which revs with the zoom of both the leader and ’Trane. - Acoustic Sounds

Re-Pressed at Quality Record Pressings on 200g Vinyl! Cut from the Original 3-Track Master Tapes!

Mastered by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman at AcousTech Mastering.

One of Nat "King" Cole's crowning achievements and a fittingly lavish celebration of a cultural and musical icon, The Nat "King" Cole Story offers a glorious overview of the career of one of the greatest and most beloved performers in popular music history. 38 tracks, many re-recorded in stereo for this anthology, offer a selection spanning his popular career.

His beginnings leading the popular jazz-oriented Nat "King" Cole Trio are represented with selections including "Route 66" and "I Love You (For Sentimental Reasons)." Hits including "Nature Boy," "Mona Lisa," "Unforgettable," "Orange Colored Sky," "Night Lights" and "Looking Back" are here to represent his unparalleled string of memorable hits as a popular vocalist. "Calypso Blues" and "Ay Cosita Linda" help illustrate the range his projects could cover. More contemporary to this anthology, selections including "Wild Is Love" are augmented here with two huge hits as a special bonus, "Ramblin' Rose" and "Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer" to further expand the scope.

A talent and voice for all times with a body of work that could and did help define their eras, Nat "King" Cole's career offers some of the finest, most enduring and treasured recordings ever made. Nat "King" Cole could never be fully served by any one set. But this wonderful cornucopia stands as a fantastic celebration for the enthusiast and a good starting point for someone just beginning to explore The Nat "King" Cole Story.

Using the original first generation 2-track and 3-track session tapes from Capitol's vaults and all-analogue systems including custom headstacks, 3-track preview heads, console and monitoring chain installed at AcousTech specially for these releases, mastering engineers Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman realize the stunning beauty of these recordings in this 45-RPM 200 gram five album set.

Originally presented as a deluxe box set of 3 LPs in a canvas-bound embossed box with essays and pictures included in a album-sized booklet, The Nat "King" Cole Story was a prestigious release Capitol took obvious pride in. Complete with 5 LPs, canvas-bound embossed box and booklet with essays and pictures, Analogue Productions proudly recreates the experience for a new generation to cherish with this deluxe release. This truly is a no-expenses-spared project, resulting in the ultimate version of this title and a historic reissue.

There are 38 songs in this collection. Of those, three are the same recordings included on other Analogue Productions Nat "King" Cole reissues. "Stardust" (track 28) is the same version included on Love Is The Thing. "St. Louis Blues" (track 30) is the same version included on the album of that title. And "Paradise" (track 33) is the same version included on The Very Thought Of You. Three more songs - "Sweet Lorraine," "It's Only A Paper Moon" and "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" - are songs that appear on After Midnight, however these versions are stereo re-recordings of the original arrangements from the 1940s.

"...mastered from the original three-track work tapes is a sonic spectacular that outdoes the original by a wide margin - as does its packaging... A major reissue." - Stereophile Records To Die For - Michael Fremer, Stereophile, February 2010

"The results on this (five) 45rpm 180g [now 200g] LP set are simply astonishing, particularly if you’ve heard the originals. The transparency, dynamics and three-dimensionality create the intense sensation of being in the studio with the musicians and especially with Cole who appears as a visceral, floating apparition between the speakers. The size and three-dimensionality of the vocal image produces the sensation of the listener being a “fly on the microphone mike stand” listening to Cole perform, surrounded by the musicians." - Michael Fremer, www.musicangle.com, Music 10, Sound 11

“Eunice Kathleen Waymon recorded more than 40 albums over a long, distinguished career that stretched for five decades. As Nina Simone, her distinctive mellifluous voice honed a career catagorized variously as a jazz singer, soul singer and folk artist; she was all of these — and more.

Little Girl Blue was Nina Simone's debut release. Bethlehem founder Gus Wildi, taken with the uniquely beautiful quality of her voice, gave her complete control over song selection, backing musicians, arrangements and production of the recording.

For this new Analogue Productions reissue of Little Girl Blue we've upped the ante. A single pocket jacket to suffice? No. We've done the lady right with a heavy Stoughton Printing tip-on gatefold jacket featuring gorgeous color photos of Nina from a glamorous stage performance. And the peerless mastering by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound in New York sounds incredible. Then top it off with 200-gram Quality Record Pressings vinyl that is unsurpassingly silent and gives incredibly rich playback.

As the liner notes say, there are plenty of musical singers who vocalize well and have an individual style but who never cross that thin and hard-to-define line that separates a good "pop" style from one that is jazz. The first few notes of this record will immediately confirm Nina's jazz credentials. As she said, "You got to get to people." That she does with a vibrant and husky contralto that tonally sounds like a blend of an unlikely combination of Marian Anderson and Ma Rainey.

Nina Simone was born February 21, 1933, in Tryon, North Carolina. She was one of eight children — all of whom sang or played an instrument. At 4 she started to play piano; by 4 1/2 she was singing and soon was part of a church trio with her sisters. By the time she reached high school she was playing jazz piano heavily tinged with the folk blues of the south. When she graduated at 17 she left home for Philadelphia. Later followed two years of serious piano study at New York's Julliard School of Music. She made her first vocal appearance singing from the keyboard at the Mid-Town Club in Atlantic City. By this time she had heard and enjoyed and been influenced by such stylists as Louis Armstrong, Kitty White, Sarah Vaughn, Louis Jordan and Billie Holiday.

Her unusual combination of classical training, the ecstatic and serious quality of gospel church music that influenced her vocal delivery, and the funky and modern schools of jazz with which she came into close contact all made for an inspiring singer and instrumentalist.

For Little Girl Blue, Nina and her rhythm section recorded the entire album plus three additional tracks in just one session. In her biography of Nina, Nadine Cohodas recounts engineer Irv Greeenbaum's recollection of that day: "Nothing like Nina's artistry had ever happened before ... Her voice and the keyboard playing were so rich and interesting that they could have stood alone."

Little Girl Blue documents Nina Simone's unparalleled and idiosyncratic musical persona at a particularly vibrant, formative stage, and helped launch her on a trajectory with more than its share of personal and professional trials and triumphs.” – Acoustic Sounds

"Listening to the AP pressing of Little Girl Blue is like being a few tables closer to the stage. At one point in 'My Baby Just Cares for Me,' the band stops and you can hear Simone tapping her foot in time. It's there in both pressings, but it has more impact — and becomes a greater part of the experience — on the AP. Analogue Productions has done everything right to ensure that these reissues are first class. Pressed by Quality Record Pressings on 200gm vinyl, each disc is flat, beautifully finished, and utterly quiet, and is packaged in a heavy cardboard jacket with well-reproduced artwork. The Nina Simone and Jeff Beck LPs are in gatefold jackets with additional photos. The packaging is terrific, but it's the sound of these LPs that will bring you back again and again. Ryan Smith has done an exemplary job of remastering, which in my case meant letting me hear new things in albums I've played many times before." — Joseph Taylor, SoundStage! Hi-Fi, October 2015

"This earliest recording shows Simone fully formed, singing among other things, 'Porgy' and 'Don't Smoke In Bed,' songs that would become signature pieces for her. Analogue Productions obtained the master tape, and this LP sounds wonderful - instrumental texture and pitch stability superior to the original or any reissue. If you set aside a slight quibble about going with stereo, no Bethlehem reissue has ever sounded this good." — Recording = 9/10; Music = 9/10 - Dennis D. Davis, Hi-Fi +, Issue 127

“The recording quality is extremely high. Transparency and timbral accuracy are high points, the ‘stereo' spread, the low point. This sounds as if it was a two track recording meant to be mixed to mono and in fact, I have a mono original that I prefer spatially, but it can't otherwise begin to compare to this reissue's remarkable clarity, transparency and black backgrounds." — Music = 10/11; Sound = 9/11 - Michael Fremer, AnalogPlanet.com. Read Fremer's full review here.

Ray Brown (1926 – 2002) was an influential American jazz double bassist and cellist, known for extensive work with Oscar Peterson and Ella Fitzgerald, among many others.

“Most of the songs picked for Ray Brown’s new recording are standard, part of Americana. Yet, you have never heard them delivered with this kind of soul.

It’s not just Brown’s bass stylings. The secret ingredient in this recording is how Brown interacts with Gene Harris. Harris has long been the master of mixing funky pianistics with honey-smooth balladry.

Soular Enegery is a good example of creativity reaching its peak in the moment. The songs were familiar, but each player’s input was new.” – Larry Kelp | The Oakland Tribune | Liner Notes of Album

“This album is important as an early milestone in pianist Gene Harris' second career. Harris, who had led the popular Three Sounds in the 1960s, had been living in obscurity in Boise, ID, for several years before he was urged by bassist Ray Brown to come to the West Coast for some recording sessions. Harris became a permanent member of Brown's regular trio for quite a few years before launching his own quartet. He had lost none of his technique, soul, or swing in the interim, as he shows throughout this fine release. Seven of the eight numbers (highlighted by "Exactly Like You," "Teach Me Tonight," and "Sweet Georgia Brown") feature Brown, Harris, and drummer Gerryck King playing soulful bop, while "Mistreated But Undefeated Blues" adds guitarist Emily Remler and the tenor of Red Holloway. An excellent effort.” – AllMusic

“This is a completely new mastering and pressing of this famous release. Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio did exceptional mastering work for this new double LP, cut at 45 RPM, and pressed by none other than the world's finest LP manufacturing plant, Quality Record Pressings. Gary Salstrom, QRP's general manager and master plating technician, plated the lacquers, and lastly we redesigned the artwork for this deluxe gatefold jacket presentation.” – Acoustic Sounds

"Soular Energy with the Ray Brown Trio, originally issued on Concord in 1985, has long been considered both great straight ahead jazz and an audiophile treasure. … a sensational sounding, classic, straight ahead jazz record that continues to bring pleasure to new generations of jazz fans. It has never sounded better than it does on this double 45. … Very highly recommended" - Michael Fremer | Analog Planet

Rated 8/10 Music, 10/10 Sonics by Michael Fremer in his August 2013 review on Analog Planet

Lacquers cut by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound from the original master tape.

Plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings.

Heavyweight glossy tip-on jacket by Stoughton Printing.

Mississippi's Son House was already legendary for a small collection of live field recordings made by folklorist Alan Lomax in 1941 and 1942, and for having taught some important licks to both Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters before he was rediscovered by a new generation of college-age fans in 1964.

The "Father of the Delta Blues" recorded this namesake LP for Columbia Records a year later in 1965. It's become, in the words of Living Blues magazine — "Essential recordings by one of the greatest bluesmen ever."

Son was born Eddie James House, Jr., on March 21, 1902, in Riverton, Miss. By the age of 15, he was preaching the gospel in various Baptist churches as the family seemingly wandered from one plantation to the next. He didn't even bother picking up a guitar until he turned 25; to quote House, "I didn't like no guitar when I first heard it; oh gee, I couldn't stand a guy playin' a guitar. I didn't like none of it." But if his ambivalence to the instrument was obvious, even more obvious was the simple fact that Son hated plantation labor even more and had developed a taste for corn whiskey. After drunkenly launching into a blues at a house frolic in Lyon, Miss., one night and picking up some coin for doing it, the die seemed to be cast; Son House may have been a preacher, but he was part of the blues world now.

And now, Analogue Productions presents a reissue unmatched in sonic quality and luxury presentation. For our version we turned to Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound to remaster the recording from the original master tapes. The freshly cut lacquers were then plated and pressed on 200-gram vinyl by our own Quality Record Pressings.

Now, sit back and enjoy one of the genere's greatest, on a reissue that's the best that's been made to date. So authentic, so real — that's the Analogue Productions difference.

"Tenor Madness", originally issued in 1956 is a jazz album by tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins. It is most notable for its title track, the only known recording featuring both Rollins and John Coltrane.

"Rollins and Coltrane had both been members of groups with Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk in the past. Rollins had had some recent success, and both were emerging as prominent solo tenor saxophone players.

Two months prior to the session for Tenor Madness Rollins was working at Rudy Van Gelder's studio in New Jersey on the album Sonny Rollins Plus 4 with Max Roach and Clifford Brown. And two weeks before, on May 11, Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones, had been recording with Davis at the same studio to fulfill his duties for Prestige, sessions that would later go on to provide material for the albums Workin', Relaxin', and Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet.

Although the rhythm section's “playing here is somewhat less vital than on that session” (with Davis),the historical importance of Tenor Madness lies in the title track. It is the only existing recording with Rollins and Coltrane playing together.

The title track is a twelve-minute duet between Rollins and Coltrane, and the B-flat blues melody has become very well known for Rollins. It is easy to distinguish between the two saxophonists, as Coltrane has a much brighter and more boisterous sound as compared to Rollins' smoother, "wet-reed" tone. However, as jazz critic Dan Krow said, the two complement each other, and the track does not sound like a competition between the two rising saxophonists.

"Paul's Pal", a jumpy swing track, is a Rollins composition, named for bassist Paul Chambers. "When Your Lover Has Gone" is a 1931 composition by Einar Aaron Swan, re-interpreted here as a drum-driven blues track. The Clinton & Debussy ballad "My Reverie" is one of Rollins' most prominent examples of his lyrical skills from his 1950s' recordings. "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", a tune from the 1935 musical Jumbo, is a Rodgers & Hart composition which goes here from a jazz waltz to a fast-paced 4/4 tune." - Wiki

"A recording that should stand proudly alongside Saxophone Colossus as some of the best work of Sonny Rollins in his early years, it's also a testament to the validity, vibrancy, and depth of modern jazz in the post-World War era. It belongs on everybody's shelf" - AllMusic

Musicians:

Sonny Rollins, tenor sax

"Philly" Joe Jones, drums

John Coltrane, tenor sax

Red Garland, piano

Paul Chambers, bass

Features of this audiophile reissue:

Limited Edition

200g Vinyl

Pressed at Quality Record Pressings

Plated by Gary Salstrom

Mastered by Kevin Gray

Mono

Deluxe high-gloss tip-on album jacket

The Prestige 200g Mono Series by Analogue Productions ‎: 200 gram Deep groove pressings, just like the originals where there is a deep groove that appears to be cut into the record label area of the disk, the result of the die that was used in the old presses in the ‘50s. Original tip-on jacket facsimiles with the original thick cardboard stock. The Monos are pressed with a flat-edge, no groove-guard flat profile, just like the originals.

“Sonny Stitt led a number of excellent record dates in 1959, especially at the end of the year when he produced three LPs for Verve over a span of three sessions with pianist Lou Levy, bassist Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Mel Lewis. Playing alto sax throughout this album, Stitt hardly sounds like a Charlie Parker clone, something that unfortunately was a frequent claim by tin-eared critics throughout a fair portion of his career. The music includes several potent originals, especially "Hymnal Blues" and the slow, powerful "Morning After Blues."” – Acoustic Sounds

“The music includes several potent originals, especially "Hymnal Blues" (which is based on an old hymn) and the slow, powerful "Morning After Blues." Even an old warhorse like "Frankie and Johnnie" (which actually dates back to the early 1800s, according to liner note writer Leonard Feather) sounds fresh in the quartet's hands, with great solos by Stitt, Levy, and Vinnegar.” - AllMusic

About Sonny Sitt :

"Edward "Sonny" Stitt (1924 - 1982) was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. He was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his generation, recording over 100 albums. He was nicknamed the "Lone Wolf" by jazz critic Dan Morgenstern, in reference to his relentless touring and devotion to jazz. Stitt was sometimes viewed as a mere Charlie Parker mimic, especially earlier in his career, but gradually came to develop his own sound and style particularly when performing on tenor sax." - Wiki

"A wonderful blues and ballad player whose approach influenced John Coltrane, Stitt could rip through an up-tempo bebop stanza, then turn around and play a shivering, captivating ballad. He was an alto saxophonist in Tiny Bradshaw's band during the early '40s, then joined Billy Eckstine's seminal big band in 1945, playing alongside other emerging bebop stars like Gene Ammons and Dexter Gordon. Stitt later played in Dizzy Gillespie's big band and sextet. He began on tenor and baritone in 1949, and at times was in a two-tenor unit with Ammons. He recorded with Bud Powell and J.J. Johnson for Prestige in 1949, then did several albums on Prestige, Argo, and Verve in the '50s and '60s. Stitt led many combos in the '50s, and re-joined Gillespie for a short period in the late '50s. After a brief stint with Miles Davis in 1960, he reunited with Ammons and for a while was in a three-tenor lineup with James Moody. During the '60s, Stitt also recorded for Atlantic, cutting the transcendent Stitt Plays Bird, which finally addressed the Parker question in epic fashion. He continued heading bands, though he joined the Giants of Jazz in the early '70s. This group included Gillespie, Art Blakey, Kai Winding, Thelonious Monk, and Al McKibbon. Stitt did more sessions in the '70s for Cobblestone, Muse, and others, among them another definitive date, Tune Up. He continued playing and recording in the early '80s, recording for Muse, Sonet, and Who's Who in Jazz. He suffered a heart attack and died in 1982." - AllMusic

The original master tapes for this title had not been used since 1980 previous to this reissue. Also, for this Analogue Productions reissue the decision was made to master and present this album as it was originally mixed to master tape. With very few exceptions all versions of this title to date, including the original, have had the channels incorrectly reversed. With this version, you'll hear this title as it was intended to be heard, without the channels reversed. And again, those reissues you've heard up until now - definitely still breathy, warm and rich - were made from something less than the master. Prepare to hear the veil removed.

“Mono & Stereo magazine's reviewer Matej Isak says Chad Kassem's efforts via his Quality Record Pressings pressing plant "goes beyond simple vinyl revival." "What can I say? I have a few different copies of this album and this release is of a completely different nature of sound. … Isak also raves, "Everything is even more subtle and present. Astrud's vocals finally got the needed three-dimensionality and 'spirit' and Getz's saxophone breathes out of proportion. When compared to other pressings, for example, Astrud is a mere statue. Here, she came alive with the feeling of real life-size. ... With 45 RPM benefits, the album gained better transients and a sense of atmosphere. It moves you more intimately and straight to the core." A Mono & Stereo Strictly Vinyl Analog Award winner.” – Acoustic Sounds / Mono & Stereo

“Getz/Gilberto is a 1964 jazz-bossa nova album by American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto, featuring composer and pianist Antônio Carlos Jobim. Its release helped fuel the bossa nova craze in the United States and internationally, becoming the first Grammy Award-winning album from non-American artists. It brought together Stan Getz, who had already performed the genre on his LP Jazz Samba, João Gilberto (one of the creators of the style), and Jobim, a celebrated Brazilian composer (and also one of the main creators of the genre), who wrote most of the songs in the album. It became one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time, and turned Astrud Gilberto, who sang on the tracks "The Girl from Ipanema" and "Corcovado", into an internationally celebrated musician. The painting on the cover is by Olga Albizu.

It won the 1965 Grammy Awards for Best Album of the Year, Best Jazz Instrumental Album - Individual or Group and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. "The Girl from Ipanema" also won the award for Record of the Year in 1965. This was the first time a jazz album received Album of the Year. It was the only jazz album to win the award until Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Letters 43 years later, in 2008.

JazzTimes (11/94, pp. 88–89) - "...essential for all serious jazz collections...served as proof that it is possible for music to be both artistically and commercially successful...this relatively sparse setting with the great Getz perfectly fit the music, resulting in a true gem..." Vibe (12/99, p. 158) - Included in Vibe's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century. In 2012, Rolling Stone ranked the album number 447 on its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It was listed by Rolling Stone Brazil as one of the 100 best Brazilian albums in history.[6] The album was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001. The album was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.” – Wiki

Astrud Gilberto says that her husband, Joao, informed Stan Getz that she "could sing at the recording." Creed Taylor recalls that it took Getz's wife, Monica, to get both Astrud and Joao into the recording studio; Mrs. Getz had a sense that Astrud could make a hit. And Getz himself is on record saying that he insisted on Astrud's presence over the others' objections. So who's right? What does it matter? The Gilbertos, Getz and the legendary Antonio Carlos Jobim followed up the bossa nova success of Jazz Samba with this, the defining LP of the genre. With one of the greatest hit singles jazz has ever known - each one who hears it goes "Ahhh!".